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Am 11. und 12. September fand an der Goethe-Universität die Abschlusstagung der BMBF-Förderrichtlinie »Förderbezogene Diagnostik in der inklusiven Bildung« statt, organisiert vom Metavorhaben Inklusive Bildung.
In diesem Jahr wurden die feierfreudigen Mitglieder der internationalen Gemeinschaft der Goethe-Universität mit zwei getrennten Sommerfesten verwöhnt. Am Abend des 28. Juni, einen Tag nach dem jährlichen Sommerfest der Universität, versammelte sich die internationale Gemeinschaft zu ihrem ganz eigenen Sommerfest. Insgesamt 85 Wissenschaftlerinnen und Wissenschaftler aus 37 Ländern und ihre Familien trafen sich zu einem Abend voller Musik, Essen und Trinken und vor allem anregender Gesellschaft.
Kein Sommermärchen
(2024)
Die Wunder-Moleküle
(2024)
Wie speichern wir in Zukunft Sonnenenergie? An der Goethe-Universität wird eine ganz neue Technologie erforscht. Am Projekt FORMOST sind neben der Universität Frankfurt noch die Universitäten in Tübingen, Gießen, Heidelberg und Erlangen-Nürnberg beteiligt. Wachtveitls Gruppe erforscht die molekularen Mechanismen der Energiespeicherung und -freisetzung bei MOST-Molekülen. Andere Gruppen kümmern sich um die Synthese der Moleküle oder die Modellierung. Das Projekt läuft von 2023 bis 2027 und wird von der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) mit insgesamt rund 4,8 Millionen Euro gefördert.
Im November besuchen die US-Wissenschaftler Dr. Erica und Prof. Dr. Justin Sonnenburg die Goethe-Universität im Rahmen der Friedrich-Merz-Stiftungsgastprofessur. Ihr Forschungsschwerpunkt sind kleine Organismen mit großem Einfluss auf unser Leben und unsere Gesundheit.
Das Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies (FIAS) feiert dieses Jahr sein 20-jähriges Jubiläum. Im markanten roten Institut am Riedberg forschen 150 Fellows und Mitarbeitende interdisziplinär an komplexen naturwissenschaftlichen Zukunftsthemen. Schwerpunkt sind Simulationen und Theorien aus allen naturwissenschaftlichen Bereichen, die Grundlagen zur Bewältigung der Herausforderungen unserer Zeit schaffen. Als gemeinnützige Stiftung arbeitet das FIAS eng mit der Goethe-Universität, benachbarten Forschungsinstituten sowie privaten Stiftern und Sponsoren zusammen.
Die FIAS-Forschungsgebiete greifen dabei häufig ineinander: So verwenden Informatiker ihre Kenntnisse, um Ansatzpunkte für Impfstoffe zu finden, oder Physikerinnen untersuchen, wie man mit Teilchenstrahlen Tumore zerstören kann. Das FIAS feiert dieses Jahr mit Veranstaltungen wie Tag der offenen Tür, Sommerfest und Beteiligung an der Nigth of Science sowie dem Museumsuferfest. Höhepunkt ist der Festakt im Casino der Goethe-Universität am 5. Dezember unter Schirmherrschaft von Prof. Enrico Schleiff.
Based on a data sample of (27.08±0.14)×108 ψ(3686) events collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider, the M1 transition ψ(3686)→γηc(2S) with ηc(2S)→KK¯π is studied, where KK¯π is K+K−π0 or K0SK±π∓. The mass and width of the ηc(2S) are measured to be (3637.8±0.8(stat)±0.2(syst)) MeV/c2 and (10.5±1.7(stat)±3.5(syst)) MeV, respectively. The product branching fraction B(ψ(3686)→γηc(2S))×B(ηc(2S)→KK¯π) is determined to be (0.97±0.06(stat)±0.09(syst))×10−5. Using BR(ηc(2S)→KK¯π)=(1.86+0.68−0.49)%, we obtain the branching fraction of the radiative transition to be BR(ψ(3686)→γηc(2S))=(5.2±0.3(stat)±0.5(syst)+1.9−1.4(extr))×10−4, where the third uncertainty is due to the quoted BR(ηc(2S)→KK¯π).
Using data samples collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider at center-of-mass energies ranging from 3.80 to 4.95 GeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20 fb−1, a measurement of Born cross sections for the e+e−→D0D¯0 and D+D− processes is presented with unprecedented precision. Many clear peaks in the line shape of e+e−→D0D¯0 and D+D− around the mass range of G(3900), ψ(4040), ψ(4160), Y(4260), and ψ(4415), etc., are foreseen. These results offer crucial experimental insights into the nature of hadron production in the open-charm region.
The J/ψ→Ξ0Ξ¯0 process and subsequent decays are investigated using (10087±44)×106 J/ψ events collected at the BESIII experiment. The decay parameters of Ξ0 and Ξ¯0 are measured with greatly improved precision over previous measurements to be αΞ=−0.3750±0.0034±0.0016, α¯Ξ=0.3790±0.0034±0.0021, ϕΞ=0.0051±0.0096±0.0018~rad, ϕ¯Ξ=−0.0053±0.0097±0.0019~rad, where the first and the second uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively. From these measurements, precise CP symmetry tests in Ξ0 decay are performed, and AΞCP=(−5.4±6.5±3.1)×10−3 and ΔϕΞCP=(−0.1±6.9±0.9)×10−3~rad are consistent with CP conservation. The sequential decay also enables a separation of weak and strong phase differences, which are found for the first time to be ξP−ξS=(0.0±1.7±0.2)×10−2~rad and δP−δS=(−1.3±1.7±0.4)×10−2~rad, respectively. In addition, we measure the Λ decay parameters and test CP symmetry in Λ decays.
Using e+e− collision data collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider at center-of-mass energies between 3.510 and 4.914GeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 25 fb−1, we measure the Born cross sections for the process e+e−→K−Ξ¯+Λ/Σ0 at thirty-five energy points with a partial-reconstruction strategy. By fitting the dressed cross sections of e+e−→K−Ξ¯+Λ/Σ0, evidence for ψ(4160)→K−Ξ¯+Λ is found for the first time with a significance of 4.4σ, including systematic uncertainties. No evidence for other possible resonances is found. In addition, the products of electronic partial width and branching fraction for all assumed resonances decaying into K−Ξ¯+Λ/Σ0 are determined.
Künstlerisches, schöpferisches Handeln hat vielfältige Dimensionen und kann unter verschiedensten Gesichtspunkten betrachtet und thematisiert werden. In der vorliegenden Arbeit richtet sich das Interesse insbesondere auf die Frage, welche Rolle und Funktion das künstlerische Gestalten – und hier speziell das Zeichnen und Malen – zum einen in der Diagnose und Therapie von psychisch auffälligen Kindern sowie zum anderen in der schulischen Sozialisation und Förderung von Kindern und Jugendlichen im Rahmen der kulturellen Bildung, der Kunstpädagogik und des Kunstunterrichts übernehmen kann.
Als eine der Pionierinnen der psychotherapeutischen Arbeit mit Kinderzeichnungen hat Sophie Morgenstern in den 1920iger Jahren als erste den besonderen Wert der Zeichnungen als Ausdrucksform des Unbewussten entdeckt und sie systematisch sowohl zu diagnostischen als auch zu kurativen Zwecken eingesetzt. An der Klinik Vaugirard in Paris ist Morgenstern ab 1925 bis zu ihrem Tod im Jahr 1940 als Leiterin des Klinik-Annexes für Kinderneuropsychiatrie in der Patronage Rollet tätig und dort verantwortlich für das Beobachtungszentrum und die psychoanalytische Ambulanz. Im Rahmen ihrer Arbeit mit den jungen Patientinnen und Patienten entwickelt sie auf der Grundlage der Freud’schen Psychoanalyse ihre besondere therapeutische Methode, bei der die Interpretation von Zeichnungen der psychotisch erkrankten Kinder im Mittelpunkt der Analyse und Behandlung steht. Eine Schlüsselrolle spielte in diesem Zusammenhang der Fall des kleinen Jacques,
bei dem Morgenstern einen kindlichen psychogenen Mutismus diagnostiziert: Infolge familiärer Konflikte ist der Junge bei seiner Einlieferung in die Patronage schon seit mehreren Monaten verstummt. Sein Fall stellt insofern eine besondere therapeutische Herausforderung dar, als das zu behandelnde Symptom seiner psychischen Probleme, nämlich der Mutismus, zugleich die Behandlung erschwert, denn diese ist in der Regel auf die verbale Kommunikation zwischen Therapeut und Patient angewiesen. Unter diesen erschwerten Behandlungsbedingungen entdeckt Sophie Morgenstern jedoch einen besonderen Ansatzpunkt: Jacques zeichnet gerne, und die Psychoanalytikerin erkennt schon bald das diagnostische und therapeutische Potenzial der von ihm angefertigten Zeichnungen und entwickelt eine Methode, um sie als Kommunikationsmedium zwischen Patient und Therapeutin zu nutzen. So gelingt es ihr über die Deutung der in diesen Zeichnungen auftauchenden Motive und der besonderen Charakteristika des Gezeichneten Aufschluss über die Zusammenhänge und Gründe für die psychischen Nöte des Kindes zu gewinnen.
Anhand von weiteren Fallbeschreibungen, basierend auf Morgensterns eigenen analytischen Aufzeichnungen, zeichnet die vorliegende Arbeit im Detail die kunstfertige empirische Vorgehensweise der Psychoanalytikerin nach: Als „Informant des Seelenlebens“ eröffnen die Zeichnungen ihr einen Zugang zum Unbewussten des Kindes, indem sie gemeinsam mit den kleinen Patient/innen die darin verborgenen symbolischen Bedeutungen herausarbeitet. Neben der Deutung von Träumen, Tagträumen, Fantasiegeschichten und Spielen kristallisiert sich so in der Arbeit Sophie Morgensterns die Kinderzeichnung als eine weitere Zugangsmöglichkeit zur Innen- und Fantasiewelt des Kindes heraus. Überdies wird deutlich, dass das Zeichnen als schöpferischer Akt von den Kindern auch aktiv für die Bewältigung ihrer psychischen Konflikte genutzt werden kann. Selbst wenn das Kind den Sinn seiner eigenen Zeichnungen nicht versteht und auch kein Interesse hat, diesen zu verraten, bietet das Zeichnen ihm eine Möglichkeit, seine zurückgedrängten Gefühle und seinen Kummer – in symbolisch verschlüsselter Form – nach außen zu bringen, ihnen Ausdruck und Gestalt zu geben. Indem das neurotische Kind im Akt des Zeichnens von seinem eigenen, zum Ausdruck drängenden Unbewussten gleichsam überlistet wird, verrät Kinderzeichnung für die psychoanalytische Diagnose und Therapie einerseites und der Förderung und Nutzung kreativer Aktivitäten im Schulunterreicht andererseits: Beide offenbaren das ausgleichende, heilende und entwicklungsfördernde Potenzial, welches im künstlerischen Ausdruck und dessen Reflexion liegt. Es ist auch ein Verdienst Sophie Morgensterns, dieses Potenzial in ihrer psychoanalytischen Arbeit mit ihren jungen Patient/innen sichtbar gemacht und praktisch umgesetzt zu haben.
The energy-dependent cross section for e+e−→ηψ(2S) is measured at eighteen center of mass energies from 4.288 GeV to 4.951 GeV using the BESIII detector. Using the same data samples, we also perform the first search for the reaction e+e−→ηX~(3872), but no evidence is found for the X~(3872) in the π+π−J/ψ mass distribution. At each of the eighteen center of mass energies, upper limits at the 90\% confidence level on the cross section for e+e−→ηψ(2S) and on the product of the e+e−→ηX~(3872) cross section with the branching fraction of X~(3872)→π+π−J/ψ are reported.
The cross sections of the process e+e−→K0SK0L are measured at fifteen center-of-mass energies s√ from 2.00 to 3.08 GeV with the BESIII detector at the Beijing Electron Positron Collider (BEPCII). The results are found to be consistent with those obtained by BaBar. A resonant structure around 2.2 GeV is observed, with a mass and width of 2273.7±5.7±19.3 MeV/c2 and 86±44±51 MeV, respectively, where the first uncertainties are statistical and the second ones are systematic. The product of its radiative width (Γe+e−) with its branching fraction to K0SK0L (BrK0SK0L) is 0.9±0.6±0.7 eV.
Using data samples with an integrated luminosity of 4.67 fb−1 collected by the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII collider, we search for the process e+e−→η′ψ(2S) at center-of-mass energies from 4.66 to 4.95 GeV. No significant signal is observed, and upper limits for the Born cross sections σB(e+e−→η′ψ(2S)) at the 90\% confidence level are determined.
Six C-even states, denoted as X, with quantum numbers JPC=0−+, 1±+, or 2±+, are searched for via the e+e−→γD±sD∗∓s process using (1667.39±8.84) pb−1 of e+e− collision data collected with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII storage ring at center-of-mass energy of s√=(4681.92±0.30) MeV. No statistically significant signal is observed in the mass range from 4.08 to 4.32 GeV/c2. The upper limits of σ[e+e−→γX]⋅B[X→D±sD∗∓s] at a 90% confidence level are determined.
Six C-even states, denoted as X, with quantum numbers JPC=0−+, 1±+, or 2±+, are searched for via the e+e−→γD±sD∗∓s process using (1667.39±8.84) pb−1 of e+e− collision data collected with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII storage ring at center-of-mass energy of s√=(4681.92±0.30) MeV. No statistically significant signal is observed in the mass range from 4.08 to 4.32 GeV/c2. The upper limits of σ[e+e−→γX]⋅B[X→D±sD∗∓s] at a 90% confidence level are determined.
Using data samples with an integrated luminosity of 4.67 fb−1 collected by the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII collider, we search for the process e+e−→η′ψ(2S) at center-of-mass energies from 4.66 to 4.95 GeV. No significant signal is observed, and upper limits for the Born cross sections σB(e+e−→η′ψ(2S)) at the 90\% confidence level are determined.
The Cabbibo-favored decay Λ+c→Ξ0K+π0 is studied for the first time using 6.1 fb−1 of e+e− collision data at center-of-mass energies between 4.600 and 4.840 GeV, collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider. With a double-tag method, the branching fraction of the three-body decay Λ+c→Ξ0K+π0 is measured to be (7.79±1.46±0.71)×10−3, where the first and second uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively. The branching fraction of the two-body decay Λ+c→Ξ(1530)0K+ is (5.99±1.04±0.29)×10−3, which is consistent with the previous result of (5.02±0.99±0.31)×10−3. In addition, the upper limit on the branching fraction of the doubly Cabbibo-suppressed decay Λ+c→nK+π0 is 7.1×10−4 at the 90% confidence level. The upper limits on the branching fractions of Λ+c→Σ0K+π0 and ΛK+π0 are also determined to be 1.8×10−3 and 2.0×10−3, respectively.
Using a sample of 1.31×109 J/ψ events collected by the BESIII detector at BEPCII during 2009 and 2012, we study the J/ψ→ωη′π+π− hadronic process. For the first time, we measure the branching ratio B(J/ψ→ωη′π+π−)=(1.12±0.02±0.13)×10−3. We search for the X(1835) state in the η′π+π− invariant mass spectra. No evidence is found and we estimate the upper limit on the branching fraction at 90% confidence level to be B(J/ψ→ωX(1835),X(1835)→η′π+π−)<6.2×10−5.
The cross sections of the process e+e−→K0SK0L are measured at fifteen center-of-mass energies s√ from 2.00 to 3.08 GeV with the BESIII detector at the Beijing Electron Positron Collider (BEPCII). The results are found to be consistent with those obtained by BaBar. A resonant structure around 2.2 GeV is observed, with a mass and width of 2273.7±5.7±19.3 MeV/c2 and 86±44±51 MeV, respectively, where the first uncertainties are statistical and the second ones are systematic. The product of its radiative width (Γe+e−) with its branching fraction to K0SK0L (BrK0SK0L) is 0.9±0.6±0.7 eV.
Using data samples collected at center-of-mass energies between 2.000 and 3.080 GeV with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII collider, a partial-wave analysis is performed on the process e+e−→ηπ+π−. In addition to the dominant e+e−→ρη component, the e+e−→a2(1320)π process is also sizeable, contributing up to 24% of the total reaction. The measured cross sections of the process e+e−→ηπ+π− are systematically higher than those of BaBar by more than 3σ at center-of-mass energies between 2.000 and 2.300 GeV. In the cross section lineshape for e+e−→a2(1320)π, a resonant structure is observed with a significance of 5.5σ, with M=(2044±31±4) MeV/c2, Γ=(163±69±24) MeV and BR⋅ΓRe+e−=(34.6±17.1±6.0) eV or (137.1±73.3±2.1) eV. In the cross section lineshape for e+e−→ρη, an evidence of a dip structure around 2180 MeV/c2 is observed with statistical significance of 3.0σ.
Based on (448.1±2.9)×106 ψ(3686) events collected with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII collider, the decay ψ(3686)→ϕK0SK0S is observed for the first time. Taking the interference between ψ(3686) decay and continuum production into account, the branching fraction of this decay is measured to be B(ψ(3686)→ϕK0SK0S) = (3.53 ± 0.20 ± 0.21)×10−5, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic. Combining with the world average value for B(J/ψ→ϕK0SK0S), the ratio B(ψ(3686)→ϕK0SK0S)/B(J/ψ→ϕK0SK0S) is determined to be (6.0±1.6)%, which is suppressed relative to the 12% rule.
Dissecting the diversity of midbrain dopamine (DA) neurons by optotagging is a promising addition to better identify their functional properties and contribution to motivated behavior. Retrograde molecular targeting of DA neurons with specific axonal projection allows further refinement of this approach. Here, we focus on adult mouse DA neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) projecting to dorsal striatum (DS) by demonstrating the selectivity of a floxed AAV9-based retrograde channelrhodopsin-eYFP (ChR-eYFP) labeling approach in DAT-cre mice. Furthermore, we show the utility of a sparse labeling version for anatomical single-cell reconstruction and demonstrate that ChR-eYFR expressing DA neurons retain intrinsic functional properties indistinguishable from conventionally retrogradely red-beads-labeled neurons. We systematically explore the properties of optogenetically evoked action potentials (oAPs) and their interaction with intrinsic pacemaking in this defined subpopulation of DA neurons. We found that the shape of the oAP and its first derivative, as a proxy for extracellularly recorded APs, is highly distinct from spontaneous APs (sAPs) of the same neurons and systematically varies across the pacemaker duty cycle. The timing of the oAP also affects the backbone oscillator of the intrinsic pacemaker by introducing transient “compensatory pauses”. Characterizing this systematic interplay between oAPs and sAPs in defined DA neurons will also facilitate a refinement of DA neuron optotagging in vivo.
The β-barrel assembly machinery (BAM) mediates the folding and insertion of the majority of outer membrane proteins (OMPs) in gram-negative bacteria. BAM is a penta-heterooligomeric complex consisting of the central β-barrel BamA and four interacting lipoproteins BamB, C, D, and E. The conformational switching of BamA between inward-open (IO) and lateral-open (LO) conformations is required for substrate recognition and folding. However, the mechanism for the lateral gating or how the structural details observed in vitro correspond with the cellular environment remains elusive. In this study, we addressed these questions by characterizing the conformational heterogeneity of BamAB, BamACDE, and BamABCDE complexes in detergent micelles and/or Escherichia coli using pulsed dipolar electron spin resonance spectroscopy (PDS). We show that the binding of BamB does not induce any visible changes in BamA, and the BamAB complex exists in the IO conformation. The BamCDE complex induces an IO to LO transition through a coordinated movement along the BamA barrel. However, the extracellular loop 6 (L6) is unaffected by the presence of lipoproteins and exhibits large segmental dynamics extending to the exit pore. PDS experiments with the BamABCDE complex in intact E. coli confirmed the dynamic behavior of both the lateral gate and the L6 in the native environment. Our results demonstrate that the BamCDE complex plays a key role in the function by regulating lateral gating in BamA.
Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) confer resistance against harsh conditions, including antibiotics, in Gram-negative bacteria. The lipopolysaccharide transport (Lpt) complex, consisting of seven proteins (A-G), exports LPS across the cellular envelope. LptB2FG forms an ATP-binding cassette transporter that transfers LPS to LptC. How LptB2FG couples ATP binding and hydrolysis with LPS transport to LptC remains unclear. We observed the conformational heterogeneity of LptB2FG and LptB2FGC in micelles and/or proteoliposomes using pulsed dipolar electron spin resonance spectroscopy. Additionally, we monitored LPS binding and release using laser-induced liquid bead ion desorption mass spectrometry. The β-jellyroll domain of LptF stably interacts with the LptG and LptC β-jellyrolls in both the apo and vanadate-trapped states. ATP binding at the cytoplasmic side is allosterically coupled to the selective opening of the periplasmic LptF β-jellyroll domain. In LptB2FG, ATP binding closes the nucleotide binding domains, causing a collapse of the first lateral gate as observed in structures. However, the second lateral gate, which forms the putative entry site for LPS, exhibits a heterogeneous conformation. LptC binding limits the flexibility of this gate to two conformations, likely representing the helix of LptC as either released from or inserted into the transmembrane domains. Our results reveal the regulation of the LPS entry gate through the dynamic behavior of the LptC transmembrane helix, while its β-jellyroll domain is anchored in the periplasm. This, combined with long-range ATP-dependent allosteric gating of the LptF β-jellyroll domain, may ensure efficient and unidirectional transport of LPS across the periplasm.
What characterises children's publishing in France at this time of a uniform worldwide culture imposed in a positive fashion by the 1989 Declaration of Children's Rights and, more dubiously, by globalization and electronic reproduction? Can we speak of the influence on it of a new multinational republic of children through the increasing number of translations from other countries or does French children's literature rest only on a few successful classics such as Jean de Brunhoff's Babar or Charles Perrault's tales, among which Little Red Riding Hood is a world's bestseller? The purpose of this paper is to point out the contemporary literary trends evincing a new awareness of our writers, artist creators and publishing houses expressing the sensibility of our reading public.
Collaboration between the International Association for the Improvement of Mother Tongue Education (IAIMTE) and the Education Department of the University of Toulouse II has existed for several years now. Such collaboration has resulted in a desire for face to face contact: the IAIMTE was intent on increasing its French audience,while the French team was able to grasp the opportunity to exchange their French-speaking studies in a broad international context. Thus, the IAIMTE requested the team from Toulouse organise the fifth conference in France (Albi) in 2005. For this conference, we invited specialists from French-speaking countries to present their research and reflections on the role of literature both inside and outside school. This issue presents the corresponding papers.
Highlights
• Retrograde dye perfusion facilitates functional analysis of aortic valve competency.
• Retrograde dye perfusion visualizes vasa vasorum of the aorta and pulmonary artery.
• Vasa vasorum of the pulmonary artery derive from conal coronary branches in humans.
Abstract
Introduction: Multiple cardiovascular conditions can lead to unexpected fatality, which is defined as sudden cardiac death. One of these potentially underlying conditions is aortic regurgitation, which can be caused by discrete changes of the geometry of the proximal aorta. To analyze aortic valve competency and furthermore to elucidate underlying pathological alterations of the coronary arteries and the vasa vasorum a perfusion method to simulate a diastolic state was designed.
Material and methods: A postmortem approach with retrograde perfusion of the ascending aorta with methylene blue was applied to three bodies. The procedure comprised cannulation of the brachiocephalic trunk, clamping of the aortic arch between brachiocephalic trunk and left carotid artery, infusion of 250 ml of methylene blue, and optical clearing of the superficial tissue layers after perfusion. Organs were examined directly following perfusion and after optical clearing.
Results: Assessment and visualization of aortic valve competency and the vasa vasorum were possible in all three instances. Visualization of the coronary perfusion was impaired by postmortem thrombus formation. Optical clearing did not provide additional information.
Discussion: The method presented here is a time- and cost-efficient way of visualizing aortic valve competency and the vasa vasorum. The visualization of the vasa vasorum highlights the potential of this method in basic research on diseases of the great arteries and coronaries. However, for a time-efficient functional analysis of the coronaries, other methods must be applied.
Einleitung: Funde von Knochen(fragmenten) können von Interesse für Strafverfolgungs- oder Denkmalbehörden sein. Die forensisch-osteologische Begutachtung kann zur Einordnung der Bedeutung des Fundes beitragen. Ziel der Studie war, durch eine Auswertung von am Institut für Rechtsmedizin Gießen begutachteten Knochenfunden einen Überblick über Umstände und Art der Funde sowie Umfang und Ergebnisse der Begutachtungen zu erhalten.
Material und Methoden: Für den Zeitraum von 2005 bis 2019 wurden im Institut archivierte osteologische Gutachten analysiert und Daten zu Fundort, -umständen, Humanspezifität, postmortalem Intervall, Spuren von Gewalteinwirkungen und die Ergebnisse weiterführender Untersuchungen ausgewertet.
Ergebnisse: Von 172 begutachteten Knochenfunden wurden 40 % in Wald- und Wiesengebieten aufgefunden. In 58 % enthielten die Funde menschliche Knochen, davon wurde in 32 % eine forensisch relevante Liegezeit nicht ausgeschlossen. Zeichen perimortaler Gewalteinwirkung fanden sich in 6 % menschlicher Knochenfunde. Ergänzende DNA-Untersuchungen wurden in 20 % aller Funde durchgeführt; davon verlief in 62 % die Typisierung humaner STR erfolgreich, und in 41 % gelang die Zuordnung zu einem antemortalen Profil. Bei den zur Begutachtung übersandten nichtmenschlichen Knochen handelte es sich am häufigsten um Knochen von Hirsch bzw. Reh (32 %), Schwein (29 %) und Rind (14 %).
Diskussion: Die Begutachtung von Knochenfunden soll Behörden ermöglichen, die (straf-)rechtliche Relevanz eines Fundes einzuordnen. Die makroskopische Untersuchung ist dafür von großer Bedeutung. Für die Identifizierung menschlicher Knochen besitzen DNA-Vergleichsuntersuchungen einen großen Stellenwert. Sie waren für 81 % der erfolgreichen Identifizierungen der Fälle mit menschlichen Knochen verantwortlich.
Im Rahmen der Obduktion des Leichnams einer angeblich im 7. Monat Schwangeren wurde ein toter Fetus geborgen. Dieser war durch Fäulnis und Madenfraß stark verändert und wog 405 g, wobei in Anbetracht des zu Verlust gegangenen Gewebes von einem Gewicht zum Zeitpunkt des Todes über 500 g auszugehen war. Die übrigen erhobenen Maße sprachen wenigstens für ein Erreichen der 26. Schwangerschaftswoche. Dennoch wurde aufgrund des Gewichts eine Einordnung als Fehlgeburt vorgenommen. Gemäß dem später, am 01.11.2018, geänderten § 31 PStV wäre eine Klassifikation als Totgeburt möglich geworden.
Hintergrund: Nach dem Grundgesetz der Bundesrepublik Deutschland (GG) liegt die Gesetzgebungsbefugnis für Todesfeststellung und Leichenschau bei den Ländern, während das Personenstandswesen in die Bundesgesetzgebungsbefugnis fällt. Das Personenstandsrecht ist im Personenstandsgesetz (PStG) und der Personenstandsverordnung (PStV) geregelt.
Ziel der Arbeit: Untersucht werden sollten evtl. Auswirkungen der Änderung des § 31 PStV vom 01.11.2018 auf die ärztliche Leichenschau. Konkret ging es um die Abgrenzung der Tot- von der Fehlgeburt und damit der Pflicht zur ärztlichen Leichenschau unter Berücksichtigung der Bundes- und Landesgesetzgebung.
Methodik: Die „Bestattungsgesetze“ der 16 Bundesländer sowie dazugehörige Verordnungen und das PStG und die PStV wurden systematisch analysiert.
Ergebnisse: In 12 der 16 Ländergesetze wird das Totgeborene bzw. tot geborene Kind – in Abgrenzung zur Fehlgeburt (Fehlgeborenes) – über das Geburtsgewicht von mindestens 500 g definiert. In Hessen, Bremen und im Saarland wird zusätzlich als alternatives Kriterium die 24. Schwangerschaftswoche (SSW) genannt. Das Kriterium „Erreichen der 24. SSW“ kam im bremischen und saarländischen Bestattungsrecht nach der Änderung des § 31 PStV hinzu. Im hessischen Friedhofs- und Bestattungsgesetz ist alternativ „nach der 24. SSW geboren“ verwendet.
Diskussion: Unabhängig von der nicht abschließend geklärten Frage, ob es sich bei einer Totgeburt um einen personenstandsrechtlichen „Sterbefall“ handelt, lässt sich eine von den „Bestattungsgesetzen“ der Länder unabhängige Leichenschaupflicht ableiten: bei der Annahme eines Sterbefalls unmittelbar aus § 38 Nr. 4 PStV, bei Ablehnung mittelbar aus § 33 S. 3 PStV i. V. m. § 5 PStV. Für diese Leichenschaupflicht müssten bezüglich der Leichendefinition die Kriterien des Personenstandsrechts gelten. Demnach wäre in allen Bundesländern – unabhängig von den Kriterien in den jeweiligen „Bestattungsgesetzen“ – zur Differenzierung zwischen Totgeburt und Fehlgeburt das alternative Merkmal „Erreichen der 24. Schwangerschaftswoche“ zu überprüfen, falls die tote Leibesfrucht, die keine Zeichen des Gelebthabens außerhalb des Mutterleibs aufweist, unter 500 g wiegt.
Bones found by chance can be of great criminal or historical interest. The nature of their appraisal depends on the individual case, the locally effective legislation and the available resources. To assess whether a find is relevant with respect to criminal investigation, the circumstances of the find and the results of the forensic examination carried out by trained personnel must be considered. The aim of this study was to obtain an overview of the circumstances and nature of the finds as well as the results of the subsequent expert opinions by evaluating bone finds from the federal state of Hesse, Germany. For this purpose, over a 10-year period from 2011 to 2020, all bone finds examined at the Institutes of Legal Medicine in Gießen and Frankfurt am Main, Germany, were evaluated retrospectively with regard to the locations and circumstances of the finds, their nature (human or non-human), the postmortem interval, possible traces of violent impact and the results of further examinations. Of the 288 bone finds evaluated, 38.2% were found in forests, meadows and parks. In 50.7%, the finds contained human bones, of which 37.0% had a forensically relevant postmortem interval of 50 years or less. Evidence of trauma was described in 77.4% of the human bone cases: postmortem damage in 78.8%, peri-mortem injury in 9.7% and ante-mortem injury in 11.5%. DNA examinations were performed in 40.4% of the human bone finds. They yielded STR profiles in 81.3%, leading to a definite identification in 35.4%. Among the non-human bones sent in, the most common were bones from pigs (23.4%), deer (18.1%), cattle (16.4%), roe deer (11.7%) and sheep (11.7%). The macroscopic examination is the first step of the forensic-osteological evaluation and sets the course for further examinations or investigations. DNA examinations are of great importance for the reliable identification of human bones. They were responsible for 70.8% of successful identifications.
We report the measurements of proton-deuteron (p-d) and deuteron-deuteron (d-d) correlation functions in Au+Au collisions at sNN−−−√ = 3 GeV using fixed-target mode with the STAR experiment at the Relativistic Heavy-Ion Collider (RHIC). For the first time, the source size (RG), scattering length (f0), and effective range (d0) are extracted from the measured correlation functions with a simultaneous fit. The spin-averaged f0 for p-d and d-d interactions are determined to be -5.28 ± 0.11(stat.) ± 0.82(syst.) fm and -2.62 ± 0.02(stat.) ± 0.24(syst.) fm, respectively. The measured p-d interaction is consistent with theoretical calculations and low-energy scattering experiment results, demonstrating the feasibility of extracting interaction parameters using the femtoscopy technique. The reasonable agreement between the experimental data and the calculations from the transport model indicates that deuteron production in these collisions is primarily governed by nucleon coalescence.
This paper reports the study of D+s→τ+ν via τ+→π+ν¯τ using a boosted decision tree method, with 7.33 fb−1 of e+e− collision data collected by the BESIII detector at center-of-mass energies between 4.128 and 4.226~GeV. The branching fraction of D+s→τ+ντ is determined to be (5.44±0.17stat±0.13syst)%. The product of the D+s decay constant fD+s and the CKM matrix element |Vcs| is fD+s|Vcs| =(248.3±3.9stat±3.1syst±1.0input) MeV. Combining with the |Vcs| value obtained from the Standard Model global fit or the fD+s from the lattice quantum chromodynamics, we determine |Vcs| = 0.993±0.015stat±0.012syst±0.004input and fD+s =(255.0±4.0stat±3.2syst±1.0input) MeV. The first uncertainty is statistical, the second one is systematic and the third one is due to the input parameters, mainly the lifetime of D+s. All results obtained in this work supersede the BESIII previous results based on 6.32 fb−1 of e+e− collision data taken at center-of-mass energies between 4.178 and 4.226~GeV.
Precise measurement of the branching fractions of of J/ψ → Λ¯π⁺Σ⁻ + c.c. and J/ψ → Λ¯π⁻Σ⁺ + c.c.
(2023)
Based on a data sample of (10087±44)×106 J/ψ events collected with the BESIII detector, the branching fraction of J/ψ→Λ¯π+Σ−+c.c. is measured to be (1.221±0.002±0.038)×10−3, and the branching fraction of its isospin partner mode J/ψ→Λ¯π−Σ++c.c. is measured to be (1.244±0.002±0.045)×10−3 with improved precision. Here the first uncertainties are statistical and the second ones systematic. The isospin symmetry of the Σ baryon in charmonium hadronic decay and the "12% rule" are tested, and no violation is found. The potential of using these channels as Σ baryon sources for nuclear physics research is studied, and the momentum and angular distributions of these sources are provided.
A light scalar X0 or vector X1 particles have been introduced as a possible explanation for the (g−2)μ anomaly and dark matter phenomena.
Using (8.998±0.039)×109 $\jpsi$ events collected by the BESIII detector, we search for a light muon philic scalar X0 or vector X1 in the processes J/ψ→μ+μ−X0,1 with X0,1 invisible decays. No obvious signal is found, and the upper limits on the coupling g′0,1 between the muon and the X0,1 particles are set to be between 1.1×10−3 and 1.0×10−2 for the X0,1 mass in the range of 1<M(X0,1)<1000 MeV/c2 at 90% confidence level.
By analyzing 7.33 fb−1 of e+e− annihilation data collected at center-of-mass energies between 4.128 and 4.226 GeV with the BESIII detector, we report the observation of the semileptonic decay D+s→η′μ+νμ, with a statistical significance larger than 10σ, and the measurements of the D+s→ημ+νμ and D+s→η′μ+νμ decay dynamics for the first time. The branching fractions of D+s→ημ+νμ and D+s→η′μ+νμ are determined to be (2.235±0.051stat±0.052syst)% and (0.801±0.055stat±0.028syst)%, respectively, with precision improved by factors of 6.0 and 6.6 compared to the previous best measurements. Combined with the results for the decays D+s→ηe+νe and D+s→η′e+νe, the ratios of the decay widths are examined both inclusively and in several ℓ+νℓ four-momentum transfer ranges. No evidence for lepton flavor universality violation is found within the current statistics. The products of the hadronic form factors fη(′)+,0(0) and the c→s Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix element |Vcs| are determined. The results based on the two-parameter series expansion are fη+,0(0)|Vcs| = 0.452±0.010stat±0.007syst and fη′+,0(0)|Vcs| = 0.504±0.037stat±0.012syst, which help to constrain present models on fη(′)+,0(0). The forward-backward asymmetries are determined to be ⟨AηFB⟩=−0.059±0.031stat±0.005syst and ⟨Aη′FB⟩=−0.064±0.079stat±0.006syst for the first time, which are consistent with the theoretical calculation.
A search for the rare radiative leptonic decay D+s→γe+νe is performed for the first time using electron-positron collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3.19 fb−1, collected with the BESIII detector at a center-of-mass energy of 4.178 GeV. No evidence for the D+s→γe+νe decay is seen and an upper limit of B(D+s→γe+νe)<1.3×10−4 is set on the partial branching fraction at a 90\% confidence level for radiative photon energies E∗γ>0.01~GeV.
Using a sample of (10.09±0.04)×109 J/ψ events collected with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII storage ring, a partial wave analysis of the decay J/ψ→γηη′ is performed. The first observation of an isoscalar state with exotic quantum numbers JPC=1−+, denoted as η1(1855), is reported in the process J/ψ→γη1(1855) with η1(1855)→ηη′. Its mass and width are measured to be (1855±9+6−1)MeV/c2 and (188±18+3−8)MeV, respectively, where the first uncertainties are statistical and the second are systematic, and its statistical significance is estimated to be larger than 19σ.
The rise of shale gas and tight oil development has triggered a major debate about hydraulic fracturing (HF). In an effort to bring light to HF practices and their potential risks to water quality, many U.S. states have mandated disclosure for HF wells and the fluids used. We employ this setting to study whether targeting corporate activities that have dispersed externalities with transparency reduces their environmental impact. Examining salt concentrations that are considered signatures for HF impact, we find significant and lasting improvements in surface water quality between 9-14% after the mandates. Most of the improvement comes from the intensive margin. We document that operators pollute less per unit of production, cause fewer spills of HF fluids and wastewater and use fewer hazardous chemicals. Turning to how transparency regulation works, we show that it increases public pressure and enables social movements, which facilitates internalization.
We examine the impact of increasing competition among the fastest traders by analyzing a new low-latency microwave network connecting exchanges trading the same stocks. Using a difference-in-differences approach comparing German stocks with similar French stocks, we find improved market integration, faster incorporation of stock-specific information, and an increased contribution to price discovery by the smaller exchange. Liquidity worsens for large caps due to increased sniping but improves for mid caps due to fast liquidity provision. Trading volume on the smaller exchange declines across all stocks. We thus uncover nuanced effects of fast trader participation that depend on their prior involvement.
This paper investigates the implications of monetary policy rules during the surge and subsequent decline of inflation in the euro area and compares them to the interest rate decisions of the European Central Bank (ECB). It focuses on versions of the Taylor (1993) and Orphanides and Wieland (OW) (2013) rules. Rules that respond to recent outcomes of HICP Core or domestic inflation data called for raising interest rates in 2021 and well ahead of the rate increases implemented by the ECB. Thus, such simple outcome-based policy rules deserve more attention in the ECB’s monetary policy strategy. Interestingly, the rules support the recent shift of the ECB to policy easing. Yet, they add a note of caution by suggesting that policy rates should not decline as fast as apparently anticipated by traded derivative-based interest rate forecasts.
We show that exposure to anti-capitalist ideology can exert a lasting influence on attitudes towards capital markets and stock-market participation. Utilizing novel survey, bank, and broker data, we document that, decades after Germany's reunification, East Germans invest significantly less in stocks and hold more negative views on capital markets. Effects vary by personal experience under communism. Results are strongest for individuals remembering life in the German Democratic Republic positively, e. g., because of local Olympic champions or living in a "showcase city". Results reverse for those with negative experiences like religious oppression, environmental pollution, or lack of Western TV entertainment.
We examine the effect of personal, two-way communication on the payment behavior of delinquent borrowers. Borrowers who speak with a randomly assigned bank agent are significantly more likely to successfully resolve the delinquency relative to borrowers who do not speak with a bank agent. Call characteristics related to the human touch of the call, such as the likeability of the agent’s voice, significantly affect payment behavior. Borrowers who speak with a bank agent are also significantly less likely to become delinquent again. Our findings highlight the value of a human element in interactions between financial institutions and their customers.
Using a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 10.9 fb−1 collected at center-of-mass energies from 4.16 to 4.34 GeV with the BESIII detector, we search for the decay χc1(3872)→π+π−χc1 in the radiative production e+e−→γχc1(3872). No significant signal is observed, and the ratio for the branching fraction of χc1(3872)→π+π−χc1 to χc1(3872)→π+π−J/ψ is measured as R≡B[χc1(3872)→π+π−χc1]B[χc1(3872)→π+π−J/ψ]<0.18 at 90% confidence level. The upper limit on the product of the cross section σ[e+e−→γχc1(3872)] and the branching fraction B[χc1(3872)→π+π−χc1] at each center-of-mass energy is also given. These measurements favor the non-conventional charmonium nature of the χc1(3872) state.
Francesco Petrarca (1304-1374), am bekanntesten für den Canzoniere, einen Zyklus von 366 Gedichten, überwiegend Sonetten, an die vielleicht nur imaginierte Laura, begann um 1350 mit der Konzeption eines zweiten Zyklus in italienischer Sprache, der Triumphi, in italienischer "Volkssprache" Trionfi, deutsch Triumphe - sechs thematisch aufeinander bezogene Langgedichte in Danteschen Terzinen im Umfang von insgesamt knapp 2000 Versen, an denen er bis fast an sein Lebensende arbeitete und die unvollendet geblieben sind. Thema ist die Eitelkeit alles Irdischen angesichts der göttlichen Ewigkeit.
Die im Rahmen der Pathogenese der Erkrankung und der folgenden Chemotherapie entstehende Neutropenie prädisponiert AML-Patienten für lebensbedrohliche Infektionen. Um diese zu vermeiden, erfolgt während der Induktionschemotherapie eine antiinfektive Prophylaxe mit Antibiotika. Dabei ist zu beachten, dass Antibiotika den größten Risikofaktor für die Entwicklung einer CDI darstellen. C. difficile gilt als der häufigste nachgewiesene Erreger nosokomialer Diarrhoen. Aufgrund dessen führte das Universitätsklinikum Frankfurt eine retrospektive Studie zur Inzidenzentwicklung der CDI und zur klinischen Rolle von CDI bei AML-Patienten unter Induktionschemotherapie durch. Ein besonderer Fokus der Studie lag auf der Identifikation von Risikofaktoren für die Entstehung einer CDI.
Die Studie inkludierte 415 homogen therapierte AML-Patienten, die sich zwischen Januar 2007 und Juni 2019 einer Induktionschemotherapie am Universitätsklinikum Frankfurt am Main unterzogen. AML-Patienten, die Diarrhoen entwickelten und in deren Stuhlproben toxinproduzierende C. difficile-Bakterien nachgewiesen wurden, wurden als AML-Patienten mit CDI definiert. Es erfolgte eine detaillierte Dokumentation aller während des Aufenthalts zur Induktionschemotherapie eingesetzten Antibiotika und Antimykotika. Um die Entwicklung der Inzidenz der CDI im Verlauf zu analysieren, wurde der Beobachtungszeitraum in zwei Abschnitte unterteilt.
Im Studienzeitraum wurde bei 37 (8,9%) von 415 AML-Patienten eine CDI nachgewiesen, wobei die Inzidenz zwischen 2013 und 2019 im Vergleich zu 2007 bis 2012 um 60,9% gesunken ist. Bedingt wird dies am ehesten durch die steigende Sensibilisierung gegenüber den negativen Auswirkungen einer Antibiotikatherapie und der Implementierung des ABS-Programmes. Die Studie bestätigt die etablierten Präventionsmaßnahmen des Universitätsklinikums Frankfurt am Main und spiegelt die Entwicklung in den westlich geprägten Ländern Europas wider.
Die Studie gibt Hinweise, dass die CDI den klinischen Verlauf der AML-Patienten unter Induktionschemotherapie nur geringfügig beeinträchtigt. Zwar wiesen AMLPatienten mit CDI mehr Fiebertage auf, dies resultierte jedoch nicht in erhöhten CrP-Werten, in einer längeren Hospitalisierung oder in einer erhöhten Rate an Intensivaufenthalten. Zwischen den betrachteten Patientenkohorten ergaben sich keine Differenzen bezüglich des Erreichens einer CR und der Gesamtmortalität. AML-Patienten mit CDI wiesen weder mehr MREBesiedelungen auf, noch kam es zu häufigeren Episoden eines ANV in dieser Patientengruppe. Besonders letzteres war unter Berücksichtigung des erheblichen Risikos einer Hypovolämie durch die Diarrhoen nicht zu erwarten, da diese für ein Nierenversagen prärenaler Genese rädisponiert.
Die Analyse bestätigt die Einordnung von Antibiotikatherapien als erheblichen Risikofaktor für eine CDI. Vor allem von den Antibiotikagruppen der Glykopeptid und Carbapenem-Antibiotika ging ein erhöhtes Risiko aus. Durch die Vorgabe des bei therapierefraktären Infektionen einzusetzenden Breitspektrumantibiotikums beeinflussen hausinterne Leitlinien das individuelle Risiko eines Antibiotikums für eine CDI entscheidend. Weiterhin weist die Studie darauf hin, dass Antimykotika nicht als Risikofaktor für eine CDI eingeordnet werden können. Durch das Studiendesign und fehlende Studien zu dieser Thematik kann jedoch keine endgültige Aussage über die Rolle von Antimykotika in der Pathogenese der CDI getroffen werden.
Bezüglich der Therapie der CDI kann die Studie aufgrund der kleinen Patientenkohorte und des inzwischen geänderten Therapieregimes der CDI bei AML-Patienten keine Aussage über die Effektivität der Therapie oder der Überlegenheit eines Medikaments treffen.
This book presents an innovative and imaginative reading of contemporary Australian literature in the context of unprecedented ecological crisis. The Australian continent has seen significant, rapid changes to its cultures and land-use from the impact of British colonial rule, yet there is a rich history of Indigenous land-ethics and cosmological thought. By using the age-old idea of ‘cosmos’—the order of the world—to foreground ideas of a good order and chaos, reciprocity and more-than-human agency, this book interrogates the Anthropocene in Australia, focusing on notions of colonisation, farming, mining, bioethics, technology, environmental justice and sovereignty. It offers ‘cosmological readings’ of a diverse range of authors—Indigenous and non-Indigenous—as a challenge to the Anthropocene’s decline-narrative. As a result, it reactivates ‘cosmos’ as an ethical vision and a transculturally important counter-concept to the Anthropocene. Kathrin Bartha-Mitchell argues that the arts can help us envision radical cosmologies of being in and with the planet, and to address the very real social and environmental problems of our era. This book will be of particular interest to scholars and students of Ecocriticism, Environmental Humanities, and postcolonial, transcultural and Indigenous studies, with a primary focus on Australian, New Zealand, Oceanic and Pacific area studies.
Aim and Objectives: We aimed to test the impact of age on long-term urinary continence (≥12 months) in patients undergoing robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy. Methods and Materials: We relied on an institutional tertiary-care database to identify the patients who underwent robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy between January 2014 and January 2021. Patients were divided into three age groups: age group one (≤60 years), age group two (61–69 years) and age group three (≥70 years). Multivariable logistic regression models tested the differences between the age groups in the analyses addressing long-term urinary continence after robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy. Results: Of the 201 prostate cancer patients treated with robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy, 49 (24%) were assigned to age group one (≤60 years), 93 (46%) to age group two (61–69 years) and 59 (29%) to age group three (≥70 years). The three age groups differed according to long-term urinary continence: 90% vs. 84% vs. 69% for, respectively, age group one vs. two vs. three (p = 0.018). In the multivariable logistic regression, age group one (Odds Ratio (OR) 4.73, 95% CI 1.44–18.65, p = 0.015) and 2 (OR 2.94; 95% CI 1.23–7.29; p = 0.017) were independent predictors for urinary continence, compared to age group three. Conclusion: Younger age, especially ≤60 years, was associated with better urinary continence after robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy. This observation is important at the point of patient education and should be discussed in informed consent.
Endogenous time of day-dependent modulation of brain activity and visual perception in humans
(2023)
Earth’s rotation and the resulting day-night cycle of solar irradiance causes rhythmic changes in environmental conditions. The circadian system anticipates these predictable challenges and the brain integrates this information with homeostatic cues in order to time behavior accordingly. Humans highly depend on the visual system, which is most drastically affected by planetary rotation, with the most pronounced changes occurring during twilight. Yet, it is still unclear how visual perception and its underlying neural processes are modulated according to the time of day. We thus investigated human brain activity in constant dim light via the fMRI BOLD-signal during resting-state and a close-to-threshold visual detection task over 6 times of the day.
BOLD-variability decreased endogenously at times of twilight in sensory cortices during resting-state and, even more, in the visual cortex during visual perception at these times. Furthermore, the visual cortex BOLD-variability reductions were associated with improved visual detection performance. In contrast, mean BOLD-activations related to visual perception were not significantly modulated by the time of day.
In conclusion, these results imply that the visual cortex BOLD-variability reductions at times of twilight constitute a predictive mechanism facilitating visual perception to compensate for the degraded visual signal quality at these times. Individual chronotype and homeostatic sleep pressure explained part of the BOLD-variability modulation, suggesting a combined circadian and homeostatic regulation. Human activity usually extends into times of twilight, even in preindustrial societies. Therefore, anticipatory optimization of the visual system at twilight may have been crucial for survival and may still be relevant today whenever electric light is not available at these times. Moreover, the findings suggest that endogenous BOLD-variability reductions in sensory cortices constitute a novel general mechanism underlying enhanced close-to-threshold perception, further supporting the biological significance of BOLD-variability.
Using 𝑒+𝑒− collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 7.33 fb−1 recorded by the BESIII detector at center-of-mass energies between 4.128 and 4.226 GeV, we present an analysis of the decay 𝐷+𝑠→𝜋+𝜋−𝑒+𝜈𝑒, where the 𝐷+𝑠 is produced via the process 𝑒+𝑒−→𝐷*±𝑠𝐷∓𝑠. We observe the 𝑓0(980) in the 𝜋+𝜋− system and the branching fraction of the decay 𝐷+𝑠→𝑓0(980)𝑒+𝜈𝑒 with 𝑓0(980)→𝜋+𝜋− measured to be (1.72±0.13stat±0.10syst)×10−3, where the uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively. The dynamics of the 𝐷+𝑠→𝑓0(980)𝑒+𝜈𝑒 decay are studied with the simple pole parametrization of the hadronic form factor and the Flatté formula describing the 𝑓0(980) in the differential decay rate, and the product of the form factor 𝑓𝑓0+(0) and the 𝑐→𝑠 Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix element |𝑉𝑐𝑠| is determined for the first time to be 𝑓𝑓0+(0)|𝑉𝑐𝑠|=0.504±0.017stat±0.035syst. Furthermore, the decay 𝐷+
𝑠→𝑓0(500)𝑒+𝜈𝑒 is searched for the first time but no signal is found. The upper limit on the branching fraction of 𝐷+𝑠→𝑓0(500)𝑒+𝜈𝑒, 𝑓0(500)→𝜋+𝜋− decay is set to be 3.3×10−4 at 90% confidence level.
The processes hc→γP(P=η′, η, π0) are studied with a sample of (27.12±0.14)×108 ψ(3686) events collected by the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider. The decay hc→γη is observed for the first time with the significance of 9.0σ, and the branching fraction is determined to be (3.77±0.55±0.13±0.26)×10−4, while B(hc→γη′) is measured to be (1.40±0.11±0.04±0.10)×10−3, where the first uncertainties are statistical, the second systematic, and the third from the branching fraction of ψ(3686)→π0hc. The combination of these results allows for a precise determination of Rhc=B(hc→γη)B(hc→γη′), which is calculated to be (27.0±4.4±1.0)%. The results are valuable for gaining a deeper understanding of η−η′ mixing, and its manifestation within quantum chromodynamics. No significant signal is found for the decay hc→γπ0, and an upper limit is placed on its branching fraction of B(hc→γπ0)<5.0×10−5, at the 90% confidence level.
Using a sample of about 10 billion J/ψ events with the BESIII detector, we search for the weak decays of J/ψ→D¯0π0+c.c., J/ψ→D¯0η+c.c., J/ψ→D¯0ρ0+c.c., J/ψ→D−π++c.c., and J/ψ→D−ρ++c.c.. Since no significant signal is observed, we set the upper limits of the branching fractions of these decays to be B(J/ψ→D¯0π0+c.c.)<4.7×10−7, B(J/ψ→D¯0η+c.c.)<6.8×10−7, B(J/ψ→D¯0ρ0+c.c.)<5.2×10−7, B(J/ψ→D−π++c.c.)<7.0×10−8, and B(J/ψ→D−ρ++c.c.)<6.0×10−7 at the 90\% confidence level.
We present the first search for the semileptonic decay D+s→π0e+νe using a data sample of electron-positron collisions recorded with the BESIII detector at center-of-mass energies between 4.178 and 4.226~GeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 6.32~fb−1. This decay is expected to be sensitive to π0--η mixing. No significant signal is observed. We set an upper limit of 6.4×10−5 on the branching fraction at the 90% confidence level.
Based on (2.712±0.014)×109 ψ(3686) events collected by the BESIII collaboration, evidence of the hadronic decay hc→K0SK+π−+c.c. is found with a significance of 4.3σ in the ψ(3686)→π0hc process. The branching fraction of hc→K0SK+π−+c.c. is measured to be (7.3±0.8±1.8)×10−4, where the first and second uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively. Combining with the exclusive decay width of ηc→KK¯π, our result indicates inconsistencies with both pQCD and NRQCD predictions.
Evidence for the singly Cabibbo suppressed decay Λ+c→pπ0 is reported for the first time with a statistical significance of 3.7σ based on 6.0 fb−1 of e+e− collision data collected at center-of-mass energies between 4.600 and 4.843 GeV with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider. The absolute branching fraction of Λ+c→pπ0 is measured to be (1.56+0.72−0.58±0.20)×10−4. Combining with the branching fraction of Λ+c→nπ+, (6.6±1.3)×10−4, the ratio of the branching fractions of Λ+c→nπ+ and Λ+c→pπ0 is calculated to be 3.2+2.2−1.2. As an important input for the theoretical models describing the decay mechanisms of charmed baryons, our result indicates that the non-factorizable contributions play an essential role and their interference with the factorizable contributions should not be significant. In addition, the absolute branching fraction of Λ+c→pη is measured to be (1.63±0.31stat±0.11syst)×10−3.
Using a total of 9.0 fb−1 of e+e− collision data with center-of-mass energies between 4.15 and 4.30 GeV collected by the BESIII detector, we search for the processes e+e−→γX(3872) with X(3872)→π0χcJ for J=0,1,2. We report the first observation of X(3872)→π0χc1, a new decay mode of the X(3872), with a statistical significance of more than 5σ. Normalizing to the previously established process e+e−→γX(3872) with X(3872)→π+π−J/ψ, we find B(X(3872)→π0χc1)/B(X(3872)→π+π−J/ψ)=0.88+0.33−0.27±0.10, where the first error is statistical and the second is systematic. We set 90% confidence level upper limits on the corresponding ratios for the decays to π0χc0 and π0χc2 of 19 and 1.1, respectively.
The measurement of the Cabibbo-favored semileptonic decay Λ+c→Λμ+νμ is reported using 4.5 fb−1 of e+e− annihilation data collected at center-of-mass energies ranging from 4.600~GeV to 4.699~GeV. The branching fraction of the decay is measured to be B(Λ+c→Λμ+νμ)=(3.48±0.14stat.±0.10syst.)%, three times more precise than the prior world average result. Tests of lepton flavor universality using Λ+c→Λℓ+νℓ (ℓ=e,μ) decays are reported for the first time, based on measurements of the differential decay rates and the forward-backward asymmetries in separate four-momentum transfer regions. The results are compatible with Standard Model predictions. Furthermore, we improve the determination of the form-factor parameters in Λ+c→Λℓ+νℓ decays, which provide stringent tests and calibration for lattice quantum chromodynamics (LQCD) calculations.
We present measurements of the Born cross sections for the processes e+e−→ωχc1 and ωχc2 at center-of-mass energies s√ from 4.308 to 4.951 GeV. The measurements are performed with data samples corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 11.0 fb−1 collected with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII storage ring. Assuming the e+e−→ωχc2 signals come from a single resonance, the mass and width are determined to be M=(4413.6±9.0±0.8) MeV/c2 and Γ=(110.5±15.0±2.9) MeV, respectively, which is consistent with the parameters of the well-established resonance ψ(4415). In addition, we also use one single resonance to describe the e+e−→ωχc1 lineshape, and determine the mass and width to be M=(4544.2±18.7±1.7) MeV/c2 and Γ=(116.1±33.5±1.7) MeV, respectively. The structure of this lineshape, observed for the first time, requires further understanding.
Using a total of 11.0 fb−1 of e+e− collision data with center-of-mass energies between 4.009 GeV and 4.6 GeV and collected with the BESIII detector at BEPCII, we measure fifteen exclusive cross sections and effective form factors for the process e+e−→Ξ−Ξ¯+ by means of a single baryon-tag method. After performing a fit to the dressed cross section of e+e−→Ξ−Ξ¯+, no significant ψ(4230) or ψ(4260) resonance is observed in the Ξ−Ξ¯+ final states, and upper limits at the 90\% confidence level on ΓeeB for the processes ψ(4230)/ψ(4260)→Ξ−Ξ¯+ are determined. In addition, an excited Ξ baryon at 1820 MeV/c2 is observed with a statistical significance of 6.2 ∼ 6.5σ by including the systematic uncertainty, and the mass and width are measured to be M=(1825.5±4.7±4.7)~MeV/c2 and Γ=(17.0±15.0±7.9)~MeV, which confirms the existence of the JP=32− state Ξ(1820).
The SU(3)-flavor violating decay J/ψ→Ξ(1530)−Ξ¯++c.c. is studied using (1310.6±7.0)×106 J/ψ events collected with the BESIII detector at BEPCII and the branching fraction is measured to be B(J/ψ→Ξ(1530)−Ξ¯++c.c.) = (3.17±0.02stat.±0.08syst.)×10−4. This is consistent with previous measurements with an improved precision. The angular parameter for this decay is measured for the first time and is found to be α=−0.21±0.04stat.±0.06syst.. In addition, we report evidence for the radiative decay Ξ(1530)−→γΞ− with a significance of 3.9σ, including the systematic uncertainties. The 90\% confidence level upper limit on the branching fraction is determined to be B(Ξ(1530)−→γΞ−)≤3.7\%.
Using 9.0 fb−1 of e+e− collision data collected at center-of-mass energies from 4.178 to 4.278 GeV with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider, we perform the first search for the radiative transition χc1(3872)→γψ2(3823). No χc1(3872)→γψ2(3823) signal is observed. The upper limit on the ratio of branching fractions B(χc1(3872)→γψ2(3823), ψ2(3823)→γχc1)/B(χc1(3872)→π+π−J/ψ) is set as 0.075 at the 90\% confidence level. Our result contradicts theoretical predictions under the assumption that the χc1(3872) is the pure charmonium state χc1(2P).
We perform a study of the X(3872) lineshape using the data samples of e+e−→γX(3872), X(3872)→D0D¯0π0 and π+π−J/ψ collected with the BESIII detector. The effects of the coupled-channels and the off-shell D∗0 are included in the parameterization of the lineshape. The lineshape mass parameter is obtained to be MX=(3871.63±0.13+0.06−0.05) MeV. Two poles are found on the first and second Riemann sheets corresponding to the D∗0D¯0 branch cut. The pole location on the first sheet is much closer to the D∗0D¯0 threshold than the other, and is determined to be 7.04±0.15+0.07−0.08 MeV above the D0D¯0π0 threshold with an imaginary part −0.19±0.08+0.14−0.19 MeV.
A transformational measurement model for structural equation modeling (SEM) of asymmetric non-normal data is proposed. This measurement model aligns with the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm of the maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) method, creating adaptability to data that deviate from normality. Distinctive properties of the connection of the measurement model and EM algorithm are maintenance of the normality assumption, which is at the core of EM algorithm, and applicability to asymmetric non-normality of observed data mediated by distortion coefficients. An evaluation using a mixture of normal and severely asymmetric non-normal data analyzed by MLE for asymmetric non-normal data (MLE for ASN) demonstrated efficiency of the model. Comparisons with robust DWLS and WLS yielded better fit results under MLE for ASN estimation.
In spite of the increasing number of biologics license applications, the development of covalent inhibitors is still a growing field within drug discovery. The successful approval of some covalent protein kinase inhibitors, such as ibrutinib (BTK covalent inhibitor) and dacomitinib (EGFR covalent inhibitor), and the very recent discovery of covalent inhibitors for viral proteases, such as boceprevir, narlaprevir, and nirmatrelvir, represent a new milestone in covalent drug development. Generally, the formation of covalent bonds that target proteins can offer drugs diverse advantages in terms of target selectivity, drug resistance, and administration concentration. The most important factor for covalent inhibitors is the electrophile (warhead), which dictates selectivity, reactivity, and the type of protein binding (i.e., reversible or irreversible) and can be modified/optimized through rational designs. Furthermore, covalent inhibitors are becoming more and more common in proteolysis, targeting chimeras (PROTACs) for degrading proteins, including those that are currently considered to be ‘undruggable’. The aim of this review is to highlight the current state of covalent inhibitor development, including a short historical overview and some examples of applications of PROTAC technologies and treatment of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
In the first two decades, when cinema was developing worldwide from a novelty into an entertainment industry, Warsaw belonged to the multinational Romanov empire. Located at its western borders, this Polish city was an important transportation and trade hub and became also a site of the domestic film industry with all its branches – production, distribution, and exhibition. The new medium had a special appeal, and it has always been assumed that the cinema was a social place where people of different classes and ethnicities came together. This article looks at the development of the local cinema market and explores the participations of the local Russian, Polish and Jewish populations. Inspired by the New Cinema History (NCH), it takes its contraposition from the traditional film historiography that uses a top-down approach as a method and the national paradigm as a defining category. Instead, it gives a three-perspectival view utilising a variety of sources including a collection of cinema programmes in three languages from 1913. Based on that, it maps screening venues with QGIS and analysis of cinema programmes, shedding new light onto the complex cinema culture of the city that was called Varshava (Варшава) in Russian, Warszawa in Polish, and Varshe (ווארשע) in Yiddish.
Objectives: Patients with open pulmonary tuberculosis (opTB) are subject to strict isolation rules. Sputum smear microscopy is used to determine infectivity, but sensitivity is lower than for culture. This study aimed to investigate the clinical relevance of this mismatch in contemporary settings.
Methods: Differential results between microscopy and culture were determined at the time of microscopic sputum conversion, from all patients with opTB between 01/2013 and 12/2017. In addition, data on HIV, multi/extensive drug-resistant TB status, time to smear- and cultural-negativity conversion were analyzed; and a Kaplan-Meier curve was developed.
Results: Of 118 patients with opTB, 58 had demographic data available for microbiological and clinical follow-up analysis; among these, 26 (44.8%) had still at least one positive culture result. Median time from opTB-treatment initiation to full microscopic sputum- or culture conversion, was 16.5 days (range 2-105), and 20 days (1-105), respectively (median difference: +3.5 days). Sixteen days after de-isolation, >90% had converted culturally. HIV- or multi/extensive drug-resistant TB status did not impact conversion time.
Conclusion: When patients with opTB were de-isolated after 3 negative sputum smear microscopy tests, a substantial part still revealed cultural growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, but it remains unclear, whether smear-negative and culturally-positive individuals on therapy are really infective. Thus, the clinical relevance of this finding warrants further investigation.
In this case report, we present a rare case of a female patient who developed pain and swelling after a total knee arthroplasty. An extensive diagnostic workup including serum and synovial testing to rule out infection was performed in addition to advanced imaging including an MRI of the knee, but it was only after an arthroscopic synovectomy that the diagnosis of secondary synovial chondromatosis was confirmed. The purpose of this case report is to highlight the occurrence of secondary synovial chondromatosis as a rare cause of pain and swelling after total knee arthroplasty, thereby assisting clinicians in providing prompt diagnosis, surgical treatment, and efficient recovery in the setting of secondary synovial chondromatosis after total knee arthroplasty.
With the technological advancements over the past years, structure determination and prediction for membrane proteins have become easier. While those approaches give snapshots of one or more conformational states of the protein, complementary techniques are necessary to elucidate the conformational space and transition between states during function. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy is a powerful tool for addressing these aspects. In this thesis, site-directed spin labeling and pulsed electron-electron double resonance (PELDOR) spectroscopy combined with various biochemical tools were used to explore the conformational heterogeneity of the β-barrel assembly machinery (BAM) complex under in vitro and in situ conditions. The BAM complex present in the outer membrane (OM) of gram-negative bacteria is responsible for the folding and insertion of the outer membrane proteins (OMPs). As the majority of OMPs depend on the BAM complex for their biogenesis, it is one of the most essential components for the cell and hence a potential target for new antibiotics. BAM is a heterooligomeric complex composed of BamA, BamB, BamC, BamD, and BamE subunits. BamA is the central transmembrane protein directly involved in the folding and insertion process. The periplasmic regions of BamA are scaffolded by BamB-E lipoproteins. Available structures of the BAM complex reveal a highly dynamic behaviour. BAM complex is also highly intertwined with the complex membrane environment and is hypothesized to be dependent on the asymmetric bilayer for its function. The functional relevance of the accessory lipoproteins or how BAM recruits and folds diverse OMPs remains elusive.
The thesis examines the membrane bilayer dependence of the BAM complex and the role of the lipoproteins in the conformational cycling of BamA. By comparing the conformational states of the central component BamA in detergent micelles and isolated native outer membranes, it is demonstrated that the native bilayer helps BamA attain multiple conformational states. In the native outer membrane environment, BamA exhibits greater flexibility than observed in the detergent micelles. Further, the conformational dynamics of BamA were explored in different subcomplexes in detergent micelles. The binding of BamCDE subcomplex creates specific changes in BamA at the lateral gate, periplasmic regions, and extracellular loops leading to a lateral-open state. BamB alone does not induce any changes in BamA, revealing that it might play an accessory role in the function of the complex. The results demonstrate that BamCDE plays a key regulatory role in the lateral gating mechanism of BamA. Additionally, the spin labeling and PELDOR spectroscopy were optimized for the extracellular loops of the full complex in intact E. coli cells. The data validates the conformational states of the complex observed in the detergent micelles. However, the distance distributions show increased dynamics, especially at the lateral gate region in the cellular environments. The increased heterogeneity might be due to the presence of the asymmetric membrane, lipopolysaccharides, or substrate interactions. Overall, the thesis answers key questions on the conformational dynamics of BamA and delineates the role of lipoproteins in the folding mechanism. It also provides new opportunities to study the functional mechanism of BAM under physiologically relevant conditions by performing experiments in native outer membranes and intact E. coli cells.
This study compares the performance of various machine learning methods in predicting the outcomes of mergers and acquisitions (M&A), with application in merger arbitrage. Merger arbitrage capitalizes on price inefficiencies around merger announcements, empirically offering consistent, near-market-neutral returns with Sharpe ratios around 1.20 and a beta of 0.14. Leveraging logistic regression, random forest, gradient boosting machine, and neural network, I analyse 21,020 M&A deals with up to 522 predictors from 1999 to 2023. I examine two datasets: one with all features available prior to deal resolution, serving as an upper bound for predictability, and another with only features available on the announcement. Among the applied methods, XGBoost outperforms in predicting deal closure probabilities, with pseudo-out-of-sample receiver operating characteristic area under the curve (ROC-AUC) scores of 0.99 and 0.81 for the full-feature and announcement-date-only sets, respectively.
I apply these predictions to cash-only merger arbitrage from 2021 to 2023, using a classification method and testing a promising fair value investment criterion. I find that equal-weighted portfolios perform best, driven by diversification and small-size premia, achieving annualized alphas of 10 to 20% against the Fama-French five-factor model. XGBoost’s superior predictive power translates into the best merger arbitrage performance, delivering Sharpe ratios of up to 1.57 for long-only portfolios and 0.60 for zero-net-investment long-short strategies, with the latter maintaining market neutrality. I confirm these results during a second trading period from 2018 to 2020, revealing different market dynamics and similar or better model performance, with Sharpe ratios as high as 2.15.
These findings establish new benchmarks for M&A deal closure prediction, highlight the value of machine learning-driven strategies in enhancing merger arbitrage performance, and offer valuable insights for both researchers and practitioners.
Die Zustandsbeschreibung der aktuellen gesellschaftlichen und wirtschaftlichen Lage als geprägt durch multiple Schocks und Krisen erscheint heutzutage redundant, nahezu banal. Umso wichtiger ist es aber für politische Entscheider einen Umgang mit der sich daraus ergebenden Unsicherheit zu finden, der weder der Komplexität der Probleme mit immer komplexeren Modellen beikommen möchte noch sich durch die Größe der Krise zur übergroßen vermeintlichen politischen Lösung verleiten lässt. Stattdessen täte die Politik gut daran, die beschränkten Möglichkeiten und die ungewissen Folgen ihrer Handlungen klar zu kommunizieren, qualitative wie quantitative Bewertungen in Entscheidungen einfließen zu lassen und in diesem Sinne wirtschaftspolitische Interventionen zurückhaltend vorzunehmen.
Banking Union is crucial for European integration, ensuring financial stability in the single market for financial services. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) plays an essential role in interpreting and enforcing the legal framework of the Banking Union, especially regarding the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) and the Single Resolution Mechanism (SRM). This in-depth analysis scrutinises the pertinent CJEU case law and highlights its implications for the Banking Union and the EU legal order.
This document was provided/prepared by the Economic Governance and EMU Scrutiny Unit at the request of the ECON Committee.
We provide empirical evidence that the pricing of green bonds tends to be highly sophisticated and based on a two-tiered approach. When buying a green bond, investors do not look only at the green label of the bond but also consider additional characteristics that involve the soundness of the underlying project and the environmental score of the issuer. By comparing the yields at issuance of green bonds to those of a matched control sample of conventional bonds, we identify a premium of 16 basis points for the green label alone. However, when the environmental score of the issuer is in the top tercile of the cross-sectional distribution, the greenium increases up to doubling. Green certification and periods of heightened climate uncertainty also significantly influence the size of the greenium. Additionally, we find that this pricing mechanism fully emerged only after the Paris Agreement came into force in late 2016.
Die Charakterisierung reaktiver Intermediate ist experimentell äußerst anspruchsvoll und häufig nicht eindeutig möglich. Die chemische Fachliteratur ist daher durchzogen von Arbeiten, in denen Intermediate anhand chemischer Intuition oder aufgrund spekulativer Interpretationen experimenteller Daten postuliert werden. Auch wenn es die Chemie wie kaum eine andere wissenschaftliche Disziplin geschafft hat, naturgegebene Zusammenhänge intuitiv erfassbar zu machen und es Chemikern somit möglich ist, mit Zettel und Stift Moleküle mit gewünschten Eigenschaften zu designen und komplexe Reaktionen zu planen, so ist doch davon auszugehen, dass zahlreiche in der Literatur postulierte Intermediate nicht korrekt zugeordnet wurden. Durch die massive Steigerung der Leistungsfähigkeit von Computern und Software in den vergangenen Jahrzehnten lassen sich quantenchemisch immer größere Systeme mit hinreichender Genauigkeit behandeln, sodass es in vielen Fällen möglich ist, experimentelle Untersuchungen theoretisch zu evaluieren und auch experimentell nicht nachweisbare Moleküle detailliert zu untersuchen. Insbesondere durch kombinierte experimentelle und quantenchemische Studien können komplexe chemische Zusammenhänge detailliert verstanden werden. Dadurch lassen sich neue Konzepte entwickeln, die eine Weiterentwicklung chemischer Intuition ermöglichen. Anhand dieses Leitbilds wurde in dieser Arbeit die Stoffklasse der Metallopniktinidene sowie daraus abgeleitete Verbindungen quantenchemisch untersucht.
Using 9.0 fb−1 of e+e− collision data collected at center-of-mass energies from 4.178 to 4.278 GeV with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider, we perform the first search for the radiative transition χc1(3872)→γψ2(3823). No χc1(3872)→γψ2(3823) signal is observed. The upper limit on the ratio of branching fractions B(χc1(3872)→γψ2(3823), ψ2(3823)→γχc1)/B(χc1(3872)→π+π−J/ψ) is set as 0.075 at the 90\% confidence level. Our result contradicts theoretical predictions under the assumption that the χc1(3872) is the pure charmonium state χc1(2P).
We perform a study of the X(3872) lineshape using the data samples of e+e−→γX(3872), X(3872)→D0D¯0π0 and π+π−J/ψ collected with the BESIII detector. The effects of the coupled-channels and the off-shell D∗0 are included in the parameterization of the lineshape. The lineshape mass parameter is obtained to be MX=(3871.63±0.13+0.06−0.05) MeV. Two poles are found on the first and second Riemann sheets corresponding to the D∗0D¯0 branch cut. The pole location on the first sheet is much closer to the D∗0D¯0 threshold than the other, and is determined to be 7.04±0.15+0.07−0.08 MeV above the D0D¯0π0 threshold with an imaginary part −0.19±0.08+0.14−0.19 MeV.
This paper describes a new genus and species of Achilidae (Hemiptera: Fulgoromorpha) Achiplecton stilleri gen. et sp. nov from the newly established tribe Achiplectini trib. nov. This tribe belongs to one of three Achilidae subfamilies, Myconinae, and is found solely in the West Cape of Southern Africa. The whole region is thought to be one the of the Earths most biologically diverse areas, also characterized by the phylogenetic antiquity of its invertebrates. Morphological peculiarities of the new achilids are discussed, especially modification of the head capsule presenting the ‘laternarisation syndrome’, which is unique in Achilidae, and tegmina modifications, without the postclaval lobe overlapping.
Four new species of Zanna Kirkaldy, 1902 are described: two from Cambodia, Z. chartieri Constant sp. nov. from Tatai in Koh Kong Province and Z. limbourgi Constant sp. nov. from Phnom Aural Wildlife Sanctuary in Kampong Speu Province and Kbal Spean in Siem Reap Province, and two from Vietnam: Z. bidoupana sp. nov. from Bidoup-Nui Ba National Park in Lam Dong Province and Z. kusamae sp. nov. from Dong Nai Biosphere Reserve in Dong Nai Province. Illustrations of the holotypes and male genitalia, photographs of live specimens and nymphs, a distribution map and host plants records are provided. The type of Zanna chinensis (Distant, 1893) is also illustrated for comparison. The genus Zanna now contains 37 species.
The identification of females of Agapostemon angelicus Cockerell and A. texanus Cresson has been a longstanding problem, with females of the two species considered morphologically indistinguishable. Prompted by recent collections in Minnesota that unexpectedly revealed the presence of A. angelicus as well as a cryptic form of A. texanus, we reassess the taxonomy of the “doubly punctate” Agapostemon species in both Minnesota and the broader United States. Examination of both new and old specimens has allowed us to identify A. angelicus females morphologically, and we reinstate A. subtilior Cockerell stat. rev. from synonymy with A. texanus. We recognize a number of new synonyms of A. subtilior that were formerly considered synonyms of A. texanus: A. borealis Crawford syn. nov., A. californicus Crawford syn. nov., A. texanus vandykei Cockerell syn. nov., A. californicus psammobius syn. nov., A. angelicus idahoensis syn. nov., and A. californicus clementinus syn. nov. We provide keys and diagnoses to allow for morphological identification of A. angelicus, A. subtilior, and A. texanus. We show that A. texanus s. s. has a relatively restricted range in the prairie region of the United States, with A. subtilior making up the bulk of what was formerly considered A. texanus. We further show that A. angelicus has a more extensive range than previously thought. Additional work remains, as there are a number of gaps in the known ranges of these species and more taxonomic work is required in the A. texanus complex south of the United States.
Apoidea, cryptic species, identification key, Halictinae, America
The poorly studied orthocentrine genus Stenomacrus Förster, 1869 is reported from Kenya and Burundi for the first time. Eight new species are described and illustrated: S. clypeatus sp. nov. from Burundi as well as S. communis sp. nov., S. glabratus sp. nov., S. luteus sp. nov., S. pronotalis sp. nov., S. scutellaris sp. nov., S. valvator sp. nov., and S. vuriaensis sp. nov. from Kenya. An identification key to species occurring in Africa and adjacent territories is provided.
The limno-terrestrial tardigrade fauna of Argentina has been investigated methodically and with modern criteria just in the last two decades, but current knowledge is still incomplete. So far, about 119 limno-terrestrial species are known for the country, of which only 6 belong to the genus Minibiotus R.O. Schuster, 1980. Until 1988, this genus was monotypic, with only Minibiotus intermedius (Plate, 1888), but today the number of species of the genus has risen to 55. In the present contribution, we describe with an integrated approach (PCM, SEM, morphometry and DNA analysis with COI, ITS2, 18S and 28S genes) a new species of Minibiotus from Salta City (Argentina). Minibiotus dispositus sp. nov. has ten transverse bands of variously shaped cuticular pores, arranged in transverse rows, with differences between smaller and larger specimens. Three macroplacoids and a microplacoid are present in the pharynx. The eggs have small conical processes and granulated chorion. The new species is morphologically and morphometrically well differentiated from all other species of the genus, and genetically from the up to date sequenced species. The new species description gave the occasion to broaden knowledge on taxonomy, morphology and faunistics of the genus Minibiotus, and on the tardigrade fauna of Argentina and the Neotropical region.